Tuesday, May 3, 2016

click for web version

Thought of the Week

“Without teacher appreciation there can’t be any student progress.”

Theresa Grimm

Tip of the Week

The typical workday is long enough as it is, and technology is making it even longer. When you do finally get home from a full day at the office, your mobile phone rings off the hook, texts continue to pop up, and emails drop into your inbox from those who expect immediate responses. While most people claim to disconnect as soon as they get home, recent research says otherwise. One study from Northern Illinois University found that the expectation that people need to respond to such messages during off-work hours produces a prolonged stress response, which the researchers named “telepressure.” It’s terrible for your health, cognitive performance, and personal relationships. Travis Bradberry, co-author of the best-selling book Emotional Intelligence 2.0, addressed the problem in a recent inc.com article. Check out the six things that Bradberry says you should never sacrifice for your job—no matter what.

TOY, Charters and Hats off to Teachers

Jahana Hayes, a history teacher at John F. Kennedy High School in Waterbury, Conn., for the past 10 years, has been named the 2016 National Teacher of the Year. Hayes says her passion for education stems from her experiences as a teenage mother in high school and as a witness to a "cycle of drugs, welfare, and abuse" in her family. She credits her teachers who “challenged me to dream bigger and imagine myself in a different set of circumstances." She succeeds Shanna Peeples, a high school English teacher from Amarillo… It’s the 17th annual National Charter Schools Week and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools will announce its Charter School Champions today and host a #ParentsSay Twitter chat tomorrow. Supporters of some 6,800 charter schools that enroll nearly 3 million kids will be celebrating...Teachers, who are being appreciated across the land this week, can get a free sandwich at Chick-Fil-A today from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. Luby’s is giving all educators 15% off their meals today. Enjoy.

Spotlight on Region 10 Schools

The Highland Park High School Academic Decathlon team won its first State Championship in late February, and last weekend finished as runner-up in the National Championship competition in Anchorage, Alaska. The team gave perennial powerhouse Granada Hills Charter High School of Los Angeles—who has won the national title five times in the last six years—a run for its money. Granada Hills scored 54,195 out of a possible 60,000 points, with Highland Park amassing 52,346—the only two teams that scored more than 50,000. The study topic was India for this year’s competition involving multiple-choice tests, interviews, essays, speeches and the popular "Super Quiz" round in front of a live audience. Highland Park’s Michael Hodak was the top scorer in three categories— economics, music and social science.

Fifteen high schools from Region 10 have received the prestigious Texas Association of Student Councils Sweepstakes Council designation. Schools earning the award must receive recognition in Outstanding Student Council; Pride and Patriotism; Energy and Environment; Drugs, Alcohol, Safety and Health Issues, and also submit a Community Service Report. Region 10 honorees include: Creekview and Newman Smith High Schools, Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD; Conrad High Schools, Dallas ISD; Ennis High School; Forney High School; Lakeview Centennial, North Garland, and Rowlett High Schools, Garland ISD; Nimitz High School, Irving ISD; Plano Senior High School; Red Oak High School; Wakeland High School, Frisco ISD; Wylie East High School; and Young Women’s Leadership Academy, Grand Prairie ISD.

Five Richardson ISD students have earned the Duke University Talent Identification Program Grand Recognition for exceptional academic achievement. Duke TIP honors academically-talented seventh graders for their exceptional scores on the ACT or SAT. The program’s 7th Grade Talent Search identifies students across the United States who have scored at or above the 95th percentile on a grade-level achievement test. As part of the program, these academically talented students take above-level college-entrance exams to learn more about their abilities. Those invited to the Grand Recognition, held later this month in North Carolina, have scored in the top 4% of their national elite cohort of more than 60,000, and have outperformed 90% of college-bound seniors taking the same tests.

Scanning the News

STAAR results released for 5th and 8th graders Friday showed little change over 2015, although some view them as an improvement in light of this year’s slightly higher passing standards. But most discussion about these initial results has been overshadowed by a growing controversy over the validity of the testing system itself. Problems began in March with technical glitches that impacted more than 14,000 computerized STAAR exams, followed by reports from several districts that some end-of-year exams were scored incorrectly. The TEA was soon swamped with complaints about hundreds of test-related issues from school leaders across the state, many saying that the STAAR results could not be trusted. Some even calling for the test to be scrapped for this year. The TEA, which has issued several memos on dealing with some of the concerns, says that nothing so far has called into question the overall reliability of the exam. Meanwhile, testing continues this week and next across the state.

Six Ohio school districts closed on Friday while authorities investigated what turned out to be a misinterpretation of an anonymous video threatening the safety of "American students." Police released a screen capture of the threat which reads, "#Tomorrow American #students will #die. Some of u are ok." The image showed a pistol in someone's hand, with “Don't go to school tomorrow" superimposed on the screen above the gun. Because of the short amount of time to investigate before schools would be opening for the day, investigators notified school officials, who chose to close. The mostly rural districts—with a total of more than 8,000 students—quickly revised bus schedules and notified parents. Officials initially believed the threat might be directed toward nearby Ohio University, but late Friday they said the video posed no risk to the university or the local schools. It was posted on Yeti—a social media app popular with college students—by a user in Europe.

Around the nation: The state of Tennessee has terminated its contract with a testing company following repeated failures with the rollout of a new assessment. Officials said the state had been forced to suspend student testing in grades 3 through 8 because the company had not shipped the test materials on time…Legislation that requires school boards in Connecticut to take additional steps to determine whether teacher candidates have a history of sexual misconduct or abuse has cleared the House. Information must be provided other districts on whether an applicant was disciplined for abuse, neglect or sexual misconduct and if they know that a teacher has been convicted of a crime or of pending criminal charges…Illinois business leaders say that by decade’s end there will be 150,000 job openings that workers aren’t properly trained to fill. The group is calling on the state to invest more in early childhood education to help meet the demands of a growing job market centered on math and science.

Items of Interest

A new study from the Education Writers Association concludes that the nation is living in a "golden age" of education journalism. Based on a survey of over 400 reporters and editors, the study finds that education journalists tend to like their jobs and say their news organizations are committed to covering the issue." A whopping 95% said they thought their work was making a positive impact on education, and most could point to specific examples. When it came to perceived challenges on the beat, the most cited issue—by 65% of respondents—was a belief that being responsible for too many aspects of education coverage left the journalist too little time for in-depth stories. A notable finding is that just 5% had a favorable view of TV news coverage of education, and of the 17 TV news journalists in the survey, not one of them expressed a favorable view of their medium's coverage of the topic. (Newspaper coverage had a 72% favorable view; radio, 46%; and Internet 33%) See the study here.

The arts survive in American education, despite pressures to focus on high-stakes tests in math and English. Currently, 27 states identify the arts as a core academic subject. And 49 states have adopted elementary and secondary standards for the arts, according to a report from the Arts Education Partnership. “We see a generally strong public-policy consensus across states that the arts are an important curricular area that contributes to a quality K12 education,” says AEP official Scott Jones. Students in schools with arts-rich learning environments outperform their peers in arts-deficient schools, according to Arts Education Partnership research. Attendance and engagement also increase when schools incorporate lessons teaching skills of an art and non-art subject in tandem. In a recent article, Jones suggests ways administrators, particularly principals, can bring the arts into daily instruction with various low-cost strategies.

The nonprofit Girls Who Code is out with a weekly YouTube series from the perspective of four women who code. They'll answer questions on everything from learning to code to the challenges they've faced and provide advice to teen girls interested in coding. "Teen girls increasingly take their cues about what they want to be from places like YouTube," said Reshma Saujani the organization's founder. "In fact, 81.9% of U.S. Internet users between the age of 14 and 17 are on YouTube. That's a lot of teenage girls. We wanted to fill a gap we saw on YouTube and present relatable and inspiring role models for the next generation of women. Check it out.

Looking Ahead No matter how cutting-edge the technology or advanced the curriculum, students have a hard time mastering essays and equations if they’re hungry, traumatized or feeling marginalized by a textbook’s inaccurate portrayal of their ethnic group. To boost academic outcomes for “at-risk” students—and turn entire underperforming districts around—school leaders now operate social services like food pantries and homeless shelters. In the classroom, teachers lead mental and physical exercises to help students focus on instruction designed to be more relevant to future career aspirations. A recent article in District Administration illustrates how schools nationwide—including some in California, Missouri, Minnesota and Mississippi—are working to remove barriers to learning for at-risk students. School leaders in one district opened a homeless shelter for students, and leaders in another expanded after-school enrichment opportunities. Those interested can read more here.

Resource Bank

As today’s Tip of the Week points out, technology is making it difficult for people in general—and leaders in particular—to get away from work. Today’s Resource Bank item continues with that theme. In it, Mashable writer Samantha Cooney shares advice gathered from several authors and work-life balance experts, including a number of apps designed to help manage the digital message flow. Check out Cooney’s “The Art of Finding Work-Life Balance with your Smartphone.”

It is the policy of Region 10 Education Service Center not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, or handicap in its vocational programs, services or activities as required by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; and Section 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. Region 10 Education Service Center will take steps to ensure that lack of English language skills will not be a barrier to admission and participation in all educational programs and services.

Region 10 Education Service Center ... 400 E. Spring Valley Rd., Richardson, Texas 75081-5101 | 972.348.1700

Location #2 ... 904 Abrams Rd, Richardson, TX 75081 | 972-348-1750